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30 sats \ 0 replies \ @Cje95 OP 8h \ parent \ on: U.S. Government Shutdown Upcoming Pain Points Politics_And_Law
If I run across it again I will be sure to send you the link but a huge issue with basic research vs private patronage is the sheer cost. I mean these first of their kind machines critical to projects easily cost $500 million plus. Its hard to gather that type of money from private patronage and then when you factor in salaries, supporting expenses, etc. its not something you see people or companies pull off it tends to be governments.
Nokia Bell Labs, commonly known as Bell Labs, was a private lab that did much more applied research though it also did basic and its researchers have been credited with the development of radio astronomy, the transistor, the laser, the photovoltaic cell, the charge-coupled device (CCD) among a ton of other things. However, the reason that this lab was so successful was because it was part of the Bell Systems corp and had an unlimited budget. Once Bell was broken up for being a monopoly in the 80s the lab has fallen off considerably.
Basic science just doesnt make money.... NIF (National Ignition Facility) is the only device that has achieved a net positive fusion reaction and more importantly a self-sustaining state called burning plasma. Fusion has the ability to the be the power source to address all our electricity needs. Something like that snowballs from just being an energy source to a national security thing. Same with CRISPER.... Now with the ability to edit DNA on one had new novel treatments to heal people but also ya have the negative side drawback with natural security as well.
The more and more I think about it a lot of basic research does end up playing a national security issue angle even if I didnt think it did at first lol